Proposed reductions in mercury emissions would not benefit public health or environment

MIDLAND — A new report released today by the Mackinac Center for Public
Policy concludes that state-mandated reductions in mercury emissions would
impose significant costs on Michigan’s economy without benefiting public
health or the environment. The report, "Assessing Stricter Mercury Controls
in Michigan," examines the sources of mercury in the state, the scientific
facts about the risks of mercury exposure and the likely impact of mandated
reductions on future mercury levels in the state.

The analysis was undertaken after Gov. Jennifer Granholm directed the
Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to draft a rule forcing
coal-fired power plants to reduce mercury emissions by 90 percent —
considerably more stringent than new federal government requirements.

"Only about 2 percent of the 4 tons of mercury deposited annually in
Michigan is the result of emissions from in-state utilities," said Diane S.
Katz, the Mackinac Center’s director of science, environment and technology
policy. "The reduction target of 90 percent is arbitrary; it is not based on
the risk of exposure, the availability of emission control technology or the
cost-effectiveness of emissions reductions."

Katz co-authored the report with Jon M. Heuss, principal scientist for Air
Improvement Resource Inc., an environmental consulting firm in Novi, Mich.
The report also finds that Gov. Granholm’s mercury directive will prove to
be significantly more costly than the federal program and provide no
additional benefits.

Katz added: "The state would do better to postpone mercury control
requirements that exceed the federal standards and cooperate with
neighboring states and the Environmental Protection Agency to better define
the risks associated with mercury exposures. We need to improve our
understanding of the interplay between mercury emissions, depositions and
bioaccumulation."

The report is available at
www.mackinac.org/8093. The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a
nonprofit research and education institute headquartered in Midland, Mich.